Mech Life
by Kira michi
Summary: He must be dreaming, because there's no way any of this is actually real. No way was any of this real... right? Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N** If you actually give this a chance then color me surprised. :V For real, tho, thanks for reading.

* * *

-:-

* * *

He yawned when he woke up, lamenting the fact he woke up... early? He peeked an eye open and grabbed his phone, squinting when he turned it on and read the time. Yep, ten in the morning. _Way_ too early for a weekend. He mumbled and pushed himself off his bed, knowing that if he didn't get out of bed now he'd probably be there until noon.

Though he wouldn't really mind much.

That's millenneal depression for you.

He did his morning routine... Well, if he was honest he didn't have a morning routine for the weekends. He just usually slept until _way_ past noon and then dragged himself out of bed. At least when he wasn't working on homework for college. He paused when he didn't hear anything else in the house, figuring his family went out. Hopefully they pick up some food. But first, before he tries putting his brain to use... Washroom. Shower. And looking in the fridge for food.

Once he had a sandwich he turned on the coffee machine and ambled over to the living room and turned on the T.V. It took a few moments to focus on the screen, and he grinned when he saw the first movie of Transformers was playing. Bayformers, he preferred to call it. He spent the next half hour watching it, and melting whenever he heard Optimus' voice, because goddamn... what a voice. Just when they were about to head into the Hoover Dam to get the cube the power went out.

He blinked. "The fuck?"

Shuffling over to the window he looked out to see if the power went out for the block. Couldn't tell with the sun out, but no one was in the streets. Hmm...

"Well... shit." He scowled to himself and pulled out his phone to surf the internet.

He frowned when he tried turning on his phone. Dead, too. What the hell? Didn't he charge it? He rubbed the back of his head and frowned in frustration. There was still his laptop. He kept it plugged in all the time. He walked for his room and sighed loudly. Damn useless devices. He should be like Fanzone and complain about machines.

He snickered and grinned at the TFA reference.

He found his laptop and tried turning it on. Emphasis on "tried." He furrowed his brows when it didn't turn on, even thought he _knew_ he had it plugged in all night. It should be fully charged. Unless it was broken? He scowled to himself and punched his carpeted floor. That meant he'd have to save up and buy a new one.

He paused.

And stared at his hand.

No pain.

Sure, he had a carpet, but he should still _feel_ something. But he felt nothing. He touched his right hand with his left and frowned. He still felt nothing. Mild panic started to settle in. He chuckled nervously and stood up. He just... needed a distraction. He can talk to his parents about this, right? Yeah... yeah, he can do that. He was probably still half asleep.

He frowned and closed his eyes tightly when he could hear voices from outside. Wow, someone didn't know how to lower their voices.

His parents wanted him to read some more, even though he read fanfictions(though he'd never tell them that), so he walked over to the shelf in the living room and grabbed a random book. Something about... romance. He gagged and tossed it to the side before he found one he thought that he'd like and settled down on the couch. Though, try as he might, he couldn't seem to concentrate on the words.

He furrowed his brows and tried to re-read it several times before he gave up.

In a fit of frustration he threw the book to the floor and crossed his arms. He _wasn't_ pouting, he was just mildly brooding. He pursed his lips before pausing and looking at the book on the ground. It was quiet in the room, while the people outside only seemed to get louder.

He didn't hear it make a noise.

He should've heard something hitting the floor, but he heard... nothing. He gave a little panicked laugh and got off the couch to crouch before the book. Picking it up and dropping it again produced no sound. Nothing. Okay... his little mild panicking turned into full out panicking. He stood up and rushed towards his room, intending to get his jacket and go out to find his parents. Doesn't matter that he didn't know where they were, he'd find them himself. Or hell, he'll go to the hospital. Plan made, he almost reached his room when he found himself on the floor.

This wasn't good, right?

" _It has outlived its' usefulness._ "

What was that? He managed to turn himself on his back, feeling a sharp burning on the back of his neck. Eyes screwed shut he tried again and again to push himself up to no avail.

" _What should we do with it, sir?_ "

" _It doesn't benefit us to keep it. Throw it out._ "

" _Yes, sir._ "

Who was talking so loud? He grabbed his head and gave a loud groan of pain when the burning increased. He could hear beeping before...

Nothing.

* * *

If he was honest it felt like someone just... tossed him onto the ground. He didn't feel so good. He felt... hungry. And sore. He felt sore everywhere. He opened his eyes to find himself face first in the dirt. The fuck? It took a few tries to push himself up and observe his surroundings.

He found himself at a dump site, surrounded by big piles of garbage.

He stared at the garbage surrounding him with disgust before he pushed himself onto his feet. Where was he? How did he even get here? Did his parents know he was here? He widened his eyes and covered his nose. The smell from the garbage was potent. Who the hell was cruel enough to drag him out of his house and dump him here? He quickly got out of there, finding that something was wrong. Okay, _everything_ was wrong. But something just felt off.

Once he was gone from there he reached up and rubbed the back of his head. The burning was gone, at least. He walked along the dirt road and looked around curiously. Was he even close to home?

He should find someone to help him.

But the dirt road seemed to go on for miles, and he saw no vehicles.

"Motherfucker," He quietly cursed whoever thought it was a good idea to just toss him at a dump site. "I'll find the bastard and punch him."

He snorted. Who was he kidding? He didn't have a mean bone in his body. Canadian through and through.

Wait a second...

 _Now_ he realized why everything felt weird.

He stopped walking and stared at the tree next to him. It still towered over him but it felt... _shorter_... He furrowed his brow in confusion and reached forward to touch it, like he was supposed to _feel_ what was wrong. And immediately screamed when he saw his hand.

He brought it close to his face, eyes bugging out when he saw...

Mechanical hands.

He had mech hands.

Hands for robots.

Robot hands.

Screw it.

All the panic he was feeling today came out in a high-pitched scream that went on for a full minute. He had brought his arms close to his body and screamed and then suddenly stopped. He was scared to look down. He knew he had to, but he _really_ didn't want to. Slowly, he dragged his eyes down and screamed when he saw his mech hands went with his mech body. He noted he was red with light orange accents, but all he focused on was that he was... was...

"I'm a robot!" He screamed and covered his robot head with his robot hands.

He was a robot... An actual robot. A robot with a robot heart. Or did robots even have hearts? He was the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz!

"If this is a dream, I'd _really_ like to wake up now!" He yelled and sprinted over to the lake he saw.

He felt... slow. Big. Kinda fat.

Once he got to the water he leaned over it and stared at his reflection. He stared at the two antennae on his head, his big, wide yellow... optics? He saw how horrified he looked. Good, that's how he should look because that's how he _feels_. He touched his face, noting that he seemed to be beat up and was scratched everywhere(including his face), trying to hyperventilate but finding that it didn't feel like hyperventilating. Hehe... ventilating. He gave a loud, fake laugh.

"What's going on...?"

Where were his parents? They'd be confused and horrified if they saw him like this. They'd be printing missing posters everywhere and feeling confused when a big robot tries to claim he's their son.

He held his hands out. "'If you find any information on our son please contact us,'" He laughed nervously, trying to guess what they'd print on the missing poster. Great, he felt close to a mental breakdown. "'His name is...'"

He paused for a long while.

He stared at his hands and furrowed his brows.

...Why couldn't he seem to remember his name...?

Great, he was panicking again. He took deep breaths, though they weren't actually doing anything for him. There was a throbbing in his chest, like he actually had a heart pumping blood, but that was it. It sure felt like a panic attack, so that was a small relief? He leaned over the water again to stare at his image, trying to come to terms that he was actually seeing what he was seeing, when he saw what was on his chest. Chestplate? Whatever.

He frowned and touched the emblem.

...Was that a fucking Autobot symbol?

Animals everywhere ran away from the area when he fell over, having fainted from too much shock.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed. :V**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N** ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

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-:-

* * *

When he came to he stared at the dark sky for a long while, but he eventually moved his hand in front of his face. Yep, he still had robot hands. Or... considering the emblem on his chest, Autobot hands. Apparently. He screwed his mouth to one side and pushed himself up. This was... mind-boggling. He crawled over to the lake and stared at his image, furrowing his optic ridges and frowning. The emblem on his chest looked... scratched... like someone had tried to remove it.

"...This is messed up." He murmured, pushing himself up and looking around.

Well, he knows one thing.

If anyone caught him like this they'd sooner shoot or run in terror. And he'd rather they didn't do either. His self-esteem was already low enough. Also, common sense. Only an idiot would stay in a populated area when they're obviously huge and intimidating. He turned and started running from the area, trying to get further away from any populated areas. Thankfully he didn't seem to be near anywhere, except for that dump. He cringed when he could hear how loud he was. Why couldn't he be lighter or something? Why couldn't he be a moped or something? Was he a car?

"Wait!" He stopped and grinned. "I'm a Transformer!" Apparently. "I can just transform!"

He did just that.

Or tried to.

He stood in place and leaned forward, waiting for... _something_ to happen. His grin slowly started to diminish. He rolled his shoulders and hopped in place before he tried doing... something again. This should be working, right?

But... nothing was transforming.

"Dammit." He grumbled before he started jogging in any random direction.

Apparently he was a transformer that didn't know _how_ to transform. He rolled his optics and snorted. If this was a dream, and he was _really_ hoping it was, then he should know how to transform. It should be second nature by now to a cybertronian. Hey, he might as well start using the correct terminology. Should he start swearing like one too? He scoffed lightly, and slid down a small hill.

Maybe he should try to find a place to hide out in, just until he made sense of all this. Maybe there were warehouses around somewhere.

Okay...

The last thing he remembered before waking up at that dump was falling down, his neck burning something fierce, and a voice. A voice that irked him. Now what confused him was the fact that he couldn't remember his own name. Or his parents. Or how his parents looked...

He slowed from a jog to a walk and put a hand to his chin, staring at the ground in front of him in determination. He actually _couldn't_ remember how they looked. Why couldn't he remember? What was going _on?_

He paused when he saw light shining through the trees, and ran towards the light. Please be an abandoned warehouse. Or even a road.

No such thing.

He peeked around the tree, holding onto it so he didn't fall down, and narrowed his optics when he saw the city in the distance. Well, he obviously couldn't go there. They had cops. And cops had guns. They'd shoot at him. Sure, he might be able to withstand it. Evidence: Scorp... onok? From the first Transformers movie. But the idea of anything shooting at him with weapons terrified him.

He winced and turned away from the city, keeping close to the trees and walking along with the freeway.

Whenever a car drove by he threw himself to the ground and cringed when he made the ground shake. He never felt as fat as he did now.

It's amazing he's still keeping a calm head when not even however long ago he was screaming his head off. He sighed and kicked the ground with a frown. But why was he like this? He stared at his arms and legs and... everything. It wasn't every day you woke up and found yourself big and mechanical. And hopefully beautiful. It wouldn't be epic to wake up like this and not be beautiful.

Another car was coming by, and he got ready to duck, when his headlights, located on his chest, started flashing.

His optics grew wide before he sprinted into the trees and tried turning them off. He ducked his head when he looked back and saw whoever it was slow down and step out. He could faintly hear "Hello?" before he was gone.

"What the hell?!" He tried covering the headlights and covered his face then. He felt like he was groping himself. "Okay, calm thoughts. Calm thoughts!" He stood straight and grinned.

He stood in place for a couple minutes before his headlights were turned off. He sighed in relief and hung his shoulders. Okay, it was a bad idea to walk beside a populated road. He stayed in the trees from now on, often walking close to the tree line to make sure he was still beside the... what was that, a freeway? He shrugged.

Where was he even going to go now?

Unless the Autobots...

He stopped in place and stared ahead silently.

"Oh, my god..." He covered his face and shook his head. "Am I one of those cliche people getting sucked into fictional universes?" He looked at the sky and almost whimpered. "Am I supposed to fall in love with someone now?"

Why him? He dragged his hands down his face and glared ahead. Hopefully that wasn't the situation and he was only in a coma. He'd prefer that than this. Because then he'd be sleeping and not in this... situation.

* * *

Soldiers moved out of the way, or stared in awe, as the large mechanical beings walked by. One could tell which soldiers were new, obvious in the way they stayed far away from the "Transformers" and with awe and fear on their faces. All Ironhide did, when he saw their expression, was snort and roll his optics. He walked behind Optimus, who was flanked by both him and Ratchet. Lately they've been doing more good work. Only two Decepticons were detected in the last three months.

"Sideswipe just had his "check-up" and other than slightly malnourished he appears to be in excellent health," Ratchet piped up from Optimus' left. "It shouldn't be long before he gets acquainted with the base and starts his pranks." He rolled his optics.

Optimus hummed lightly. "Hopefully it does not take Sunstreaker too long to show up."

"Ehh, he'll be fine," Ironhide waved his hand, as if waving off the idea of the mech never showing up. "He and Sideswipe could never stay away from each other for more than a groon."

"Nevertheless, that's one more mech that's joined our team," Optimus gave a satisfied nod. "My only hope is more arrive."

"Yeah, this planet's okay," Ironhide shrugged and looked around. "Except for all the dirt here." It gets everywhere.

Ratchet downed his cube before he pulled out his datapad. "Well, you'll be happy to know Jolt is settling in nicely. He still complains about the mud every now and then, but that's one more medic for the team."

Optimus nodded, satisfied, as they all walked into the hangar they regularly recharged in. He was glad the humans here were so accommodating, especially since they realized they meant them no harm. Though they often stepped around Ironhide carefully. Ironhide found it funny when they stared at him uneasily when he would bring out his guns. No matter how much Optimus told him to stop it he would just snicker and say he was just playing.

Not for the new soldiers that arrived.

They were about to transform and recharge, making sure they were ready for the next mission(if a Decepticon ever showed itself) when Lennox stopped outside with a truck. Optimus paused before he half-turned towards Lennox.

"Major Lennox," Optimus gave a curt nod. "Decepticon?"

"Thankfully no," Lennox stepped close and smirked when Ironhide stepped closer to him. He patted his ankle and looked up. "And how many times do I have to tell you it's just Will for you?"

Optimus gave a sheepish smile. "Yes... well..."

"Prime is too high-strung, Will." Ironhide gave him a smirk, receiving a dry stare in return.

"Anyway, I just got news," Lennox turned serious then. "We just got a signal."

"So... Decepticon?" Ratchet gave him a sarcastic question, along with a roll of his optics.

"It's Amp," That name caused them all to visibly start, and Lennox yelped when Ironhide picked him up before all three cybertronians were marching out of the hangar. "I _told_ you to stop doing that!" He gave the black mech an annoyed scowl. "His signal popped up on our radars six hours ago."

"Where?" Optimus was practically jogging.

"No idea, his signal's scrambled," Lennox held up his hands to silently tell them to slow down. "We can't get a lock on him, but we know he's somewhere in Michigan."

"Perhaps I can isolate the signal." Ratchet offered, seeing both Optimus and Lennox nod.

"Do it, fast," Optimus gave the order and turned to stare at Lennox. "In the meantime, we need to get ready to move out."

Lennox nodded. "You got it."

* * *

He kept walking for two hours before he found a random barn, with a big hole in the back but he should be covered, and quickly ducked inside so no one spotted him. Okay, he was alone, he didn't feel _any_ need to sleep, and he was slowly getting hungrier. Just a small pinch in his... tanks. But he should be able to hold it off. He rubbed the back of his neck and paused when he could feel his plating.

"This is frickin' weird," He muttered and hung his arms over his knees, sitting in the corner and away from the hole. "Or _fraggin'_ weird."

He groaned and reached up to put his face into his hands, and he stayed like that for a long time.

Until he heard a vehicle approaching.

He froze and looked out the tiny, dirty window. He could hear multiple voice, and saw a truck before it stopped just outside the barn. _Craaaaaap._ Of course! Why not?! He started crawling for the big ass hole before he got out and leaned against the wall with bated breath. Breath? Venting...? He didn't know!

"...dad is getting worse! You should just move outside as soon as you turn eighteen."

"I am, that's why I have that job as a waitress. And I have work _tomorrow._ "

He groaned quietly and hit his head lightly. Of course they're teenagers. This barn is probably a place they frequent to drink. Would they see him crawling away? Are they drunk enough that they won't notice?

"And that's why you're the driver!" He heard a peppy voice as he moved carefully away from the wall. "Plus you're the only one that has their license!"

"It makes no sense to give your kid a car when he doesn't even have his license." He heard another kid.

"Shut up, I'm taking the test in a week!"

He rolled his optics and slowly crawled away. As soon as he's far enough he'll get up and start running. That _had_ been the plan. Until his hand landed on a bottle and broke it. He stared at his left hand in horror and heard startled muttering from inside the barn. He ducked down and laid as close as he could to the ground.

"Oh, _please_ be stupid enough to think I'm a boulder." He muttered, biting his lower lip when he saw one of them look out the back.

"...Jack?!" He heard the waitress kid yell.

"Yeah?!" He could see another kid jump out of the truck with a pack of beer. He rolled his optics. Damn kids.

"Oh, it's just Jack." He could hear relieved muttering and sighed before he started crawling away again.

And once he was far enough he stood up to run, making sure to not glance behind him and chance his luck, and disappeared into the trees. His relief was apparent when he leaned against a tree and heaved a big sigh. All right... One hurdle down. Okay, he must be close enough to a populated area. Kids wouldn't stray far from a town just to drink. Right?

It wasn't long before he was walking again, glancing around to make sure nothing was after him. Pitchforks and such. One of those kids might've spotted him. He'd be more incognito if he could just transform! He scowled to himself and shook his head.

He tried again, bending his knees and trying to will himself to transform into... _something!_

And like last time. It. Didn't. Work!

He gave an irritated groan and kicked a tree, and instantly jumped when it broke. It was still standing, but the trunk had seen better days. That's one thing he's never doing again.

So far, this day has sucked.

Another few hours passed by, and he gave a loud scream when he slid down a small hill and into a lake. He sat there, dejected, just for a moment and he grumbled when he pulled himself out of the water. Great. Muddy, muddy water. He had been making great progress, heading to... wherever, and _this_ had to happen. At least he wasn't cold, but he stared distastefully at the mud. Now he needed a shower. Or he could go through a car wash. He snickered to himself.

"This keeps getting worse and worse," He smiled without any humor before he was scoffing. "I hate this day."

He really, really did.

So far he seemed to be far away from any populated area, if the signs he passed by were any indication. Looks like he was just walking along the highway now, but had to stay close to the treeline because of all the vehicles. He'd rather not walk through the trees blindly. He might get lost. Well, he _was_ lost right now, but he'd rather stay close to a road than walking in circles in the forest.

The sun was coming up.

Normally that would be great, because the daytime was _always_ great, but then people would see him. He stared at the pink sky uneasily and moved further into the trees. He's been up all night and he hasn't felt the need to sleep once. How often did he need to sleep? He could hear birds singing, and could tell it was warming up. He was feeling better, more relaxed. His entire body was still sore, but he felt calm. There is something peaceful about being awake when the sun's rising.

That had been his thought until he heard a tiny ' _splat_.'

He paused and looked around before he started looking himself over. And there, on his right shoulder, was a small stain. Bird poop. He stared at it for a long moment and vented deeply before he covered his mouth and gave an angry scream. Of course! Stupid birds! Can't they even tell he's been through enough?! Everything he's known is different! _Really_ different, he thought as he stared at his servos. He can't even transform. Though he probably wouldn't want to, considering that the terrain seemed to be really uneven.

Why was he like this?

He knew he kept repeating himself, but... _why_ did he look like this? He was human. But right now he was a mech.

"...Da fuck?" He muttered to himself and snickered.

Don't panic, he told himself. Do _not_ have another panic attack. It would be very pathetic, but very understandable at the same time. But he didn't want to panic, he needed a clear head. He needed to be calm and focused. And do more important stuff. Like wonder where the hell he was. He was pretty sure he wasn't in Canada.

...Now that he thought about it, considering his appearance, he probably wasn't even Canadian.

"I need to know what's going on!" He screamed at the sky.

Like the sky was suddenly going to tell him what was what. He scowled to himself and continued to stare at the sky, backstrut straight and arms by his sides.

He frowned.

What was he supposed to do?

His only plan was to wander around until... _something_ happens. Like waking up from this or... He didn't know. He sighed and lowered his head to stare at the ground. This was starting to feel hopeless. Was he going insane? Is that was this was? Because he's pretty sure that's what this is. Or who knows. This might actually be real.

He sighed and rubbed his face with both hands before he patted his cheeks. All right. No more feeling down.

He's got to do something other than sulk here. He hasn't walked this much in years. You'd think he'd be tired, but he felt all right. He idly wondered, as he walked forward, if he fell asleep now _would_ he wake up in his bed. Or would he remain like this. He'd rather not know.

Just as he was about to contemplate finding a way to wipe the mud off he heard stomping.

 _Loud_ stomping.

He froze when he heard it, looking around and backing away when he found the direction the sound was coming from. Holy shit... or holy slag. It sounded huge. It sounded like there were a lot of them. He paused and waved his servo when he realized he was huge too. He can take 'em! Hopefully it's just some animals.

What came through the trees, however, made his optics bug out.

"Amp!"

...Was that fucking _Optimus Prime?_

He watched, dumbfounded, as three mechs ran through the trees and stopped a few meters from him. Optimus Prime. Ironhide. Ratchet. The sun glinted off their plating, making them almost ethereal. He must have looked stupid, standing there gaping at them. He looked at all three and slowly tilted his helm to the side.

What in the _hell_...?

"You're here..." Ratchet said, shoulders slumping and a relieved smile crossing his faceplate.

He blinked.

"You sure scared everyone!" Ironhide walked forward, into his space, and slapped his shoulder. He almost fell over, still dumbfounded. "They really fragged you up." He looked him over, and frowned at all the deep scratches on his body.

"I am sorry, Amp," Optimus stepped forward and placed a servo on his chest, head bowed with a regretful expression. "We would have found you sooner, had we had a lead. I failed you as a leader."

He blinked and stared at the three mechs. They had the same color scheme in the movie, but looked kinda different. He stared at them for a long, long moment, which made them uneasy. Ironhide and Ratchet glanced at each other while Optimus continued to stare at the red mech with worry.

They all jumped when he started laughing hysterically.

"I am so _glad!_ " He leaned forward with a wide grin. "For a moment there I actually thought this was real!" He turned around and held his arms out, motioning towards the trees and then himself. "I mean, c'mon! There was no way this could've been real."

Optimus glanced at Ratchet, seeing him furrow his optic ridges worriedly. The medic stepped forward and held his servos up to get "Amp's" attention. When he did he motioned towards himself and the other two mechs.

"No, we're _real_. This isn't... You're _safe_ , Amp." Ratchet's worry only increased when the grin diminished.

"...Wha... Wait... What did you call me?" He cocked his helm to the side and screwed his mouth to one side.

Ironhide frowned. "... _Amp_... That's your name." He looked worried, as well. "Well, it's actually Ampere, but we all call you Amp. Which you should _know._ " He started to look suspicious.

"Amp" shook his head and took a few steps back. "N-No, that's not my name. My name's not Amp! You got the wrong man!" He chuckled nervously and swung his arms. "Y-You— _no!_ That's not my name. Can't be." He held his servos out towards himself. "I'm not this Amp person— _mech!_ " He continued to shake his head.

Ratchet frowned and looked at Optimus. " _He's delirious. They had him for four months, Optimus. Who knows what they did,_ " He spoke through the comm link, seeing an intense frown cross Optimus' face. " _He may have even... created a world so that he didn't have to deal with the trauma._ "

"And what _is_ your name?" Ratchet asked, stepping forward and waiting for Amp to make contact with his optics.

Amp opened his mouth and seemed to hesitate before his shook his head. "That's not important!"

Ironhide looked at Optimus and Ratchet sharply. " _He can't remember his own name?_ " He frowned deeply, stepping around Amp to make sure he didn't do something like run away.

"You aren't real!" They were brought back to the situation when Amp held his hands up towards them, all three of them. A nervous grin was on his face, yellow optics wide with worry. "I-I mean, you're all fictional, so I just must've went crazy and I'm in my room!" He looked at the three of them with an overwhelmed expression.

"And... what do you mean by fictional?" Optimus stepped forward, seeing Amp look at him and jump at the fact that he shorter than Optimus. "What room?"

"Sheesh, the size difference..." He shook his helm and grinned at Optimus. "You're not real. You're fictional. You're from a cartoon show based on toys! Therefore, I _must_ be dreaming!" He turned around and started walking around their little space between the trees. "I'd _really_ like to wake up now!" He paused. "Please."

"Amp," He turned and cringed that he even reacted to the name. He startled when Ratchet grabbed his shoulders and stared at him. "Calm down. You're working yourself into a panic attack."

"I... I think I'm already having one." Amp gave a sheepish smile.

"I know." Ratchet gave a solemn nod.

Ironhide jumped when Amp suddenly fell over, optics dark and body limp. Optimus stepped forward just as Ratchet was retracting a cable back from the back of Amp's helm. He looked over Amp's body with worry, seeing deep gashes everywhere. He could see a few choppy weld lines. He and Ironhide grabbed an arm each, pulling the unconscious mech up.

"The trauma must have been too much," Ratchet murmured, staring at the red mech with pity. "But insisting that we're not real..."

Ironhide growled lowly. "What the frag did they do to him?"

"For now, let us bring our friend back to safety," Optimus reached up and touched the side of his head. "Major Lennox. We have found him." He glanced down at the unconscious mech.

" _Thank god! Everyone back at base will be relieved,_ " Lennox sounded very happy. " _How is he?_ "

Optimus went silent and frowned, glancing at Ratchet to see him glaring at the ground. "...He has sustained mental trauma. However, we do not know the extent of his physical injuries."

"..." He heard Lennox give a remorseful sigh.

* * *

 **My pen for my tablet broke so I decided to finish this chapter, 'cause I can't draw until I get a new one. :V**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N** I've read the comics, not the ones based on bayformers, but mtmte and such.

* * *

-:-

* * *

Epps watched as Optimus and Ironhide put Amp on the medical berth, arms crossed and leaning on one side. He turned his head when he saw Lennox heading over with an intense look on his face. Ratchet was busy getting his equipment ready, about to examine Amp and see what was wrong inside. As far as Epps could tell he looked like shit.

"So... exactly _what_ was he saying when you guys found him?" Epps looked up at Optimus with a frown.

The big mech gave a deep sigh. "He insisted he was not here."

"Not only that, he was sayin' none of us are real," Ironhide motioned to the three of them with a scowl. "Goin' on about how we're all fictional."

Epps pulled a face. " _Fictional?_ "

"I can understand that he believed that he was still captured," Ratchet piped up, attaching wires to Amp's body and frowning to himself. "but he was..." He shook his helm. _He was almost talking as if he were a human_. "Nevertheless, I'm not a psychologist. I'm not qualified to understand anyone's psyche."

"But Ratchet's still one smart cookie." Ironhide smirked when he saw Ratchet roll his optics at the human saying.

"Shut up," Ratchet sent him a flat stare before he went back to work. "There was this _one_ psychologist, very good at his job and stayed in the background. Never could remember his name. If he was here he'd be able to work with us and help Amp with his trauma." Not magically take it away, but to help him cope with it.

Lennox frowned. "You never had more psychologists?"

"Of course we did. Before the war started. Not many survived when the fight was over on Cybertron, or they either evacuated. Until there's a call sent out that the war in truly over not many neutrals will come out of hiding." Ratchet shrugged to himself. "This mech is particular, Runt or something, was one of the best and he stayed with the Autobots last I checked. He's probably out there," He waved his hand upwards. "somewhere."

"We have human psychologists." Lennox offered, stepping forward and seeing Ratchet send him a dubious stare.

"And as I understand it, Lennox, your people still think they can reprogram us as if we're just machines," He scoffed loudly, which made Lennox and Epps frown. "Most, if not all, of you don't even think us as living beings."

"Yeah, well, _we_ do." Epps gestured to himself and Lennox with a scowl.

Ratchet rubbed his face and sighed. "Yes, I... Yes, I know you do. It's just that seeing Amp again... and realizing he's living in his own world is..."

"Troubling." Lennox nodded in agreement.

"...I'll consider it," Ratchet was hesitant to let a human doctor examine them. Besides, he still remembers what they had done to Bumblebee when they thought they were still threats. "Okay, all of you get out." Ratchet waved his hand, shooing everyone out. "This hopefully won't take long."

"Meaning we're hoping he's not messed up inside too much." Epps translated, going from a walk to a quick jog when he saw the medic glare at him.

Optimus stayed behind until he was the last one and reached up to place a servo on Ratchet's shoulder. "Let us just be glad he is safe, Ratchet. Do not get too discouraged, no matter what you find." He gave an encouraging smile.

"Yeah..." Ratchet shrugged his hand off and glared at the unconscious mech. "All right, you too. Get out." He waved his hand dismissively.

Usually he'd be nicer, but he had a job to do. Optimus understood. The big mech gave him a smile and turned to head out, leaving the medic alone. Ratchet watched him leave before he sighed and looked down at the red mech. Time to get to work.

* * *

He had to meet with a few people today, via webcam, to discuss recent developments. Human lives weren't long compared to a cybetronian, but they did have a tendency to drone on. Optimus sighed when he walked out of the hangar after a few hours, deciding that he should check in with Sideswipe. His worry was only rising. They had arrived at the base midday, and it wasn't long after that that Ratchet had brought Amp into his "med-bay." It was almost midnight and they were still in there, with Amp most likely still in stasis.

"Hey, Optimus!" He looked up and saw Sideswipe heading over with a grin. "Long time no see!" His grin was infectious, so he returned it with a smile.

"Sideswipe," He greeted, raising his hand and resting it on Sideswipe's shoulder in greeting. "It has been a while."

"Too long!" His grin widened. "I would've met up sooner, but the Galactic Council was being a pain in the aft..." He waved his hand and rolled his optics with a sneer.

"Understandable." Optimus nodded slowly. The Galactic Council, a council made of organic alien races, were wary of any Cybertronian, and there had been some rumours they would attack and kill any lone ships once they confirmed they were cybertronian. Unfortunately, for them, they had a harsh reputation of being warmongers, having plunged their entire world in a war. Hopefully the council did not come to this planet.

"I heard that Amp was captured," Sideswipe crossed his arms and looked at him curiously, with no judgment on his face. "Is he okay?" Optimus remained stoic, though the his optics went dark. Sideswipe furrowed his optic ridges and stepped close to pat the Prime on his chestplate. "Hey, no harm, Prime. I'm sure you did everything you could."

"We will go over everything once Ratchet has completed his report," Optimus saw Sideswipe give a small nod. "Until then, tell me of your adventures."

Sideswipe grinned.

Optimus listened, nodding and smiling every once in a while, while Sideswipe regaled his tales with enthusiasm. Once Ironhide joined them he had tried to speak even louder but had quieted down once he was told that the humans on the base were retired for the night.

"So this planet has short cycles?" Sideswipe looked upwards at the dark sky.

"Yep. The humans sleep every time it gets dark," Ironhide shrugged lightly. "They're a short-lived species, they barely live past a joor."

Sideswipe raised his optic ridges in surprise. "Wow. Barely enough time to make friendships." He grinned when Ironhide sent him a dry stare.

"They may not live as long as us," Optimus replied, sending the black mech a sharp stare when he heard him mutter 'here we go.' "but they are a brave, courageous species."

"That doesn't go for the entire species, Prime." Ironhide grunted with a sneer, seeing Optimus nod with a frown.

"Of course, old friend," He wasn't naive. Like them, the humans could be cruel. Enough evidence pointed to Bumblebee's brief imprisonment with Sector Seven. "We won't allow another mech to be taken prisoner by them." Ironhide gave a satisfied nod.

"So... who're these fleshbags that took Amp?" Sideswipe shrugged with a frown, and grinned sheepishly when he saw Prime send him a sharp stare for his little name.

Ironhide opened his mouth to answer, having a lot to say about the "fleshbags" when Ratchet slowly walked towards them with a grave look in his optics. He stood up from the ground, facing the medic with Optimus and Sideswipe. Ratchet handed Optimus a datapad, rubbing his face tiredly and sighing loudly while the Prime went over the datapad slowly. The look in his optics slowly went dark.

He looked up. "Call a meeting."

* * *

"They took him _apart?!_ "

Ironhide looked appalled, along with everyone else in the hangar. As soon as Lennox and Epps had heard they were having a meeting, they had insisted they attend, even though they looked like they were going to fall over. Sideswipe eyed them curiously, having a hard time comprehending that one of these little creatures took down _Megatron_. Meanwhile, Ratchet, standing with his fists on his hips, slowly nodded.

"I could see where they made the... incisions," He scoffed and glared ahead. "They were careful. They made sure not to cut any energon lines. From what I could tell they made sure to preserve his helm and spark."

"They took him apart," Epps said, looking slightly nauseated. "As in they... they took his head off his... body..."

Ratchet nodded. "They did. To study our anatomy and inner workings, I imagine. My first guess is that they tried to "hack" him to control him," His rolled his optics, having used air quotation marks. "but we're not machines and _your_ machines are far too primitive to try and "hack" us. So once they figured they couldn't control him they decided to study him."

"To what?" Sideswipe frowned. "To make their _own_ Cybertronian?" He gave an incredulous scoff.

Ratchet snorted and shrugged. "For all we know that's what they intend to do," He looked around the hangar, seeing every mech looking disturbed. "But the fact remains is that what they did was enough to traumatize Amp."

"And this conversation about... thinking we're fictional..." Jolt frowned, arms crossed over his chestplate. "What did he mean by that?"

"...I'm not completely sure." Ratchet looked frustrated.

Optimus stepped forward. "I am sorry, old friend. You may not completely trust the humans, but we are in need of help for Amp when he awakens," A frown of disapproval crossed Ratchet's face. "His level of... trauma has troubled me."

"You and the rest of us," Ironhide grunted with a scowl. "When do we wake him?"

"Tomorrow," Optimus decided, seeing everyone nod. "For now we will let him rest without worry." He looked at Ironhide and Ratchet, seeing them share a look. "This meeting is dismissed. We will speak of this tomorrow with Amp."

Everyone walked out of the hangar with the exception of Optimus, Ratchet, and Ironhide. Once they were alone Ratchet reached up to rub his faceplate with a groan. Ironhide reached over to pat his back while Optimus frowned with an unfocused look in his optic.

"You noticed it, too?" Ratchet questioned, seeing the other two mech stare at him curiously while he covered his lower face with his hands. He gave them a dry stare. "How Amp was referring to himself as if he were human?"

Ironhide paused and gave a brief nod. "Yeah. When he called himself a "man." Why do you think he'd do that?"

"You got me. As I said previously, I'm not a psychologist," Ratchet crossed his arms with a frown. "And we're screening every shrink that Lennox recommends us." He gave the Prime a look, receiving a nod of agreement in return.

"I will not lie to you... I am worried about Amp," Optimus stated, looking disappointed with himself. "For all we know he may never recover."

"Hey, don't speak like that, Prime," Ironhide his his shoulder lightly with a tense grin. "All of us are messed up in the head from this war." He received a very dry stare from Ratchet for his lack of tact. "Amp's trauma just... The _humans_ are the ones that did it."

"Yet we could have prevented it." Optimus offlined his optics and gave a great big sigh.

They were all silent before Ratchet waved his servos. "All right! That's it! No more depressing feelings! We're going to recharge, right now, so we're all bright-eyed and whatever else the humans say when we get Amp out of stasis." He made shooing motions towards the other two mechs, seeing them stare at him in surprise. "Come on, I'm not joking. Get moving!"

Ironhide was about to make a comment when Ratchet reached into his subspace. Optimus was already out of the hangar before he brought his wrench out.

He smiled when he heard Ironhide yelp out in pain.

* * *

Darkness.

That's all he experienced while in stasis.

Until...

"Wake up."

Amp frowned, hearing how annoyed the voice sounded, and onlined his optics with a groan. He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, feeling groggy and confused. Where was he? Last he remembered he was walking through the woods... He was a mech, he couldn't forget that. He was a transformer that couldn't transform... And then he saw... Did he really see them? Did he really or was it all a dream?

He raised an optic ridge, still staring at the ceiling before he turned his helm. He wasn't registering what he was seeing, not yet, he still felt groggy. Felt like he just woke up. Which he... technically did.

Amp stared at the group of mechs for a few more seconds before his optics popped wide open.

He screamed and pushed himself to sit and fumbled around, then gave a high-pitched scream when he fell off the berth. He landed on his back, with his legs still on the berth, and then groaned out, long and low. He heard a few steps and voices, but ignored them.

"Pain..." Amp groaned, reaching up towards his head. "So much pain..." He moved his legs until they were on the ground, and cringed when he felt and heard how loud they landed. "Why did I even do that?"

"Amp..."

He froze and then slowly pushed himself up and peeked over the berth. At the forefront was Optimus, and he gawked before he ducked his head. He stared at his servos, turning them over and silently cursed. It wasn't a dream! He was still like this! And they still called him Amp!

He furrowed his optic ridges.

What was going on?

"Amp," He cringed and then peeked over the berth again. Optimus was looking at him worriedly. He gave a tense, lopsided grin and then slowly stood. "Are you alright?" The big mech stepped forward and held a hand out.

" _Yep!_ " Everyone jumped at how loud and how high his voice was. His arms were close to his body, optics wide and grin tense. "I'm fine! _Totally_ fine!" He held his hands out and backed away, making sure to keep his optics on the mechs. "Y-You can see me, right? Fine!" He held his arms out to show just how 'fine' he was.

Everyone else looked at each other, but Optimus kept an eye... or optic on him. He rubbed his servos together and looked to the side, grin still wide and tense. He sucked at trying to act "okay." He jumped violently when he felt something touch his shoulder and turned to see Ratchet looking at him with a frown.

"Sit on the berth." Ratchet ordered, pointing to said berth.

Amp stared at him with wide optics.

" _Now._ " He didn't look like he was going to take no for an answer.

Amp chuckled nervously and held his servos out towards Ratchet, slowly inching his way to the berth and then sitting down. He tapped his fingers on his knees, making sure to look anywhere else instead of the medic. Instead of the Transformer. Instead of... Ratchet.

His optics flicked over to the medic.

He heard something, hearing a voice(baritone, probably Optimus) telling the other mechs to wait outside. Amp heard them leave and continued to tap his fingers. He vented slowly, trying to calm himself. He bet if he were human(and why the hell wasn't he human?) he'd be sweating buckets right now.

Ratchet...

From Transformers.

From a T.V show(or movie).

Right in front of him.

You'd think he'd be freaking out, considering how much he loved Transformers, but right now panic seemed to be at the forefront of his mind. He couldn't think straight with his how his... spark(?) was pulsing. Amp reached up to lay a hand over his chest. It wasn't like having a human body. He would feel how hard his heart was pounding, but this... feeling nothing except for a light pulse was almost soothing.

The pulsing seemed to slow down the longer he kept his servo there.

"You're quiet," He jumped and looked up to see Ratchet frowning at him. The pulsing sped up. "Is something wrong?"

"Uhh...!" Amp grinned nervously. "I-I... just... seen something shocking."

"That you're safe?" Ratchet asked with a quirked optic ridge.

Amp paused and furrowed his optic ridges in confusion. He... He had said that before, too, didn't he? That he was safe? What did he mean by that? It didn't make any sense. He had been at home recently and these guys... they kept acting as if they _knew_ him? Home... _Home_... What did it even look like? He reached up and touched the back of his head with a frustrated frown. He felt a hand touch his shoulder and jumped, almost just as violently as when Ratchet touched him. Amp whipped his head around.

Optimus stared at him, holding his hand up. "It is just me," He said, as if it was _normal_ that _Optimus Prime_ was just standing there! Amp stared, optics wide while he nodded somewhat jerkily. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Uh...?" Amp shrugged with an awkward smile. "I guess?"

Optimus continued to stare at him worriedly.

"Uh... yeah! I'm doing fine!" Amp gave him a thumbs up just to be sure.

He didn't look reassured, and that made Amp lose his smile. He lowered his hand and rubbed the back of his helm, looking forward when Ratchet told him to do so and then squinted when a light was shined into his optic. He was told to look left and then right, having a normal check-up. Once he was done Amp gave a relieved sigh and lowered his shoulders. Having check-ups was never fun.

Ratchet stepped in his field of vision and he looked up to see Ratchet frowning down at him with his arms crossed. Optimus walked up behind him and muttered something to him, which he waved off.

"...Do you know who I am?" He asked, pointing to himself.

Amp cocked his head to the side.

"Huh?"

"Do you know who I am?" Ratchet repeated himself, his frown looking more stern.

Amp shuttered his optics. "Yeah?" _From cartoon shows_ , he thought to himself.

That was enough to make Ratchet relax with a relieved sigh, which only confused Amp. Optimus then stepped forward with the same question and received the same confused 'yeah?' from him. They both looked happier, while he only looked more confused. Was he... not _supposed_ to know them? Ratchet grabbed his arm and lifted him up until he was standing and then pushed him towards the hangar doors.

Wait. Hangar doors? Amp frowned and quirked an optic ridge.

Where _were_ they?

Once he was outside he looked around curiously, looking upwards to stare at the bright sky and then at all the soldiers around him. No one appeared to be surprised to see him. Some red mech stepped up and grinned at him, while he only tilted his head. Who was this guy? Where are they? What was going on with him?

"It's been joors since we saw each other!" The red mech threw his arms apart with a wide grin. Amp only shuttered his optics. Joors? Wasn't that like eighty or something human years? "How've you been?"

"...I've been better," Amp muttered, turning is head to see Ironhide step forward and slap his shoulder. He stumbled forward and jolted when someone grabbed him to steady him. "... _Way_ better."

"Bumblebee's on his way here," Ironhide piped up, seeing the red mech rub his arm. "You'll finally get to catch up. Nothing seems to separate him from Sam."

"With the exception of the news that you're free." Ratchet handed him something, and he stared at the cube curiously.

Amp smiled uneasily before he turned his helm and stared down at the two humans. He stared at them for a moment before he jumped back with a yelp. He could see just _how_ much he towered over them. Amp stumbled and jumped when someone caught him, turning around to see Optimus looking down at him worriedly. He gave an awkward smile and moved away.

He was fucking _huge!_

"You did the same thing when you met us!" The one of the right said with a grin.

Amp shuttered his optics rapidly. Wait... He knew these two. He held the cube in both hands and started tapping it. Lennox and... Shit, it's been a while since he saw the movies. Epps...? Was it Epps? Probably. He didn't know. He noticed the past tense. What did they mean when he _met_ them?

The pulsing in his chest sped up.

"Do you at least know us?" Lennox stepped forward and motioned towards him and Epps.

Amp nodded tensely. "Yep." He muttered and looked to the side.

Ratchet observed him before he waved his hands. "Alright, you all saw him! Give him time so he can actually relax!" He shooed everyone away. Or tried to. Some mechs started protesting before Sideswipe stepped forward with a grin.

"So what did you mean when you said Prime and the others were fictional?!" Optimus sent him a look of disapproval.

"Sideswipe—"

 _This_ was Sideswipe? But... he was silver in the movie wasn't he? Then again, he was red in the comics and cartoons. And he had feet instead of wheels. Amp chuckled nervously and looked to the side, making sure not to make any contact with anyone's optics. Right now he was doing everything in his power to stay calm. And that meant not talking. But...

"Well, you know, just that fact that, uh..." Amp rubbed the back of his helm and looked upwards. "None of you are supposed to exist."

Everyone looked surprised at that.

When they shouldn't, because _none_ of this should be real! He could only guess that he was at that secret base at Diego Garcia, and that they brought him here. But why? Why was he even here? Why couldn't he remember anything? Why was he surrounded by fictional characters that were acting as if they knew him?!

Oh, great, he was panicking again.

"I-It's just that none of you should be real," Amp gave them a wide, nervous grin along with an equally nervous laugh. He backed away from them, holding a servo up while he looked around. "I-I mean all of you are from a movie... A _movie!_ " He gave a hysterical laugh and rubbed the back of his helm, looking around wildly. He should calm down. "A-A-And now I'm here. In a movie! W-With a bunch of fictional characters!"

Ratchet motioned for everyone to back up, who could only stare in stunned silence.

"I'm here... in a movie..." He muttered to himself and dropped the cube, turning around with shaky hands. "Alright... alright, let's calm down now... We gotta calm down..." _Or else they'll think you're crazy_ , he thought.

Amp looked back to see everyone giving him varying levels of concerned looks.

Okay, given their expressions they already thought he was nuts.

Ratchet stepped forward with his servos out. "Amp—"

"Oh, no, you don't!" Amp snapped, pointing at the medic accusingly with a scowl. He edged around him, seeing Ratchet give him a confused stare. "Last time you got close to me I passed out! So that means you _did_ something to me." He gave him a suspicious glare and paused before he grabbed the cube from the ground. "I'm fine! I'm good! I'm not panicking anymore."

Everyone watched as he trembled.

"...Right." Ironhide gave him an unimpressed stare.

"I am!" Amp couldn't seem to stop his hands from shaking and the pulsing in his chest was going fast.

Ratchet frowned. "All right, Amp. With me." He motioned him to follow and turned around.

Amp frowned, seeing everyone looking at the medic and then looking at him. He ducked his helm before he was following him. He heard someone say, "I think you need to get that psychologist, Prime." He scowled in indignation. He was perfectly fine! He didn't need a shrink! He looked at his hands and then at the passing soldiers. Or maybe he did... He continued to follow the silent medic, still holding the cube in his hands. They were his only lifeline at this moment. If he let go he might panic even more, if possible.

He followed Ratchet into an empty hangar, looking around and jolting when he realized that they used this place as a communication room or something in the movies. Amp looked around and grinned to himself, feeling geeky for a moment. Cool.

"I'm going to leave you alone now," Ratchet instructed, turning to see the red mech jump and turn his head to look at him. "Take as long as you need to calm down. As soon as you feel like you've calmed down enough you come find me or Optimus. Understood?"

Amp paused before he smiled in relief. Ratchet narrowed his optics at his lack of response, though he did note the smile.

"Uh... yes!" Amp nodded and then saluted, as well. "Got it!"

Ratchet rolled his optics at his salute. "Take as long as you need," He watched him nod and went to walk past him. He paused and then turned. "We'll help you, Amp. Just remember that."

Amp turned to stare at him for a moment and gave a small nod. Ratchet returned the nod and then left the hangar. Amp was left alone, looking worried as he stared at the cube in his hands. Slowly, he vented and let it all out with a sigh.

"I don't think anyone will be able to help me." He gave a sardonic smile.

* * *

"I think it was a bad idea to bring him out of stasis." Was the first thing Ironhide said.

Optimus sent him a stern stare, but Ironhide refused to back down. He crossed him arms and sent the Prime a glare. Everyone else had left, all looking worried and confused. How else were they supposed to feel when one of their own claimed they weren't supposed to exist? When Ratchet returned they went to the "med-bay" which was just one of the hangars they were given.

"Maybe," Ratchet turned and frowned. "but his behaviour right now only brings more questions."

"Yeah, like what the frag happened to him?"

"It will take several days to get a psychologist here," Optimus looked at them both to see them frown at the news. "Unless you are willing to talk to him and help us make sense of what he is saying?"

Ratchet and Ironhide cringed at that. They weren't good when it came to having a spark-to-spark with other mechs that had survived horrible incidents. Optimus stared at them before he offlined his optics and sighed. He nodded to himself, making a decision, which only made his comrades send him looks of suspicion.

"You are giving him a chance to calm down?" He questioned, seeing Ratchet slowly nod while still giving him a suspicious glare. "Then once he has calmed down I will speak with him." He walked past the both of them.

At least that's what he intended until his arms were grabbed by both Ratchet and Ironhide.

"Optimus, the mind of a mech isn't something to handle so carelessly," Ratchet gave him a frown. "Wait until one of their psychologists arrive, with our approval, before we speak with him."

"I wish only to ease his mind," At their confused stares he shook his arms and nodded gratefully when they released him. "Ampere is confused and scared, and we are only overwhelming him by surrounding him with mechs and people he has known. I will give him time to calm down and speak with him and reassure him we are his friends."

"And ask him about... how he's doing?" Ratchet frowned.

"Yes."

"This could work or backfire badly, Prime," Ironhide crossed his arms and gave him a long look. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Optimus gave a wry smile. "We have all dealt with someone that has gone through a traumatizing time." Which was, unfortunately, true.

"Well... what else can we do?" Ironhide shrugged. "Kid was always prone to panic attacks."

"Yeah, and in his line of work that is sloppy." Ratchet rolled his optics.

"Besides," Ironhide sent the Prime a sly smirk, one that made the taller mech narrow his optics suspiciously at. "He always did love your voice."

Optimus offlined his optics and reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Ironhide..."

Ironhide guffawed while Ratchet reached over to cuff the back of his head.

* * *

∠ **( ᐛ** **」∠** **)** **＿**


End file.
